


Baby Blues

by some_fantastic



Category: The Following
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Threesome - F/M/M, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-03
Updated: 2014-06-03
Packaged: 2018-02-03 04:01:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1730396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/some_fantastic/pseuds/some_fantastic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma's got a surprise for the boys, and she's not quite sure how they'll react. Joe, of course, is thrilled.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Baby Blues

**Author's Note:**

> For the following prompt on kink-following: http://kink-following.livejournal.com/754.html?thread=2546. Also thanks to alonelygod for some much-needed advice.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emma, Joe, and Roderick have a discussion; Emma wins.

Oh shit.

Oh shit, shit, _shit_.

Emma made a face and shook the thin piece of plastic, as if that would help. There was only so much time she could spend in the bathroom, passing it off as ‘girl problems’ before people started getting suspicious. The cardboard box on the bathroom counter only aggravated the problem. The fact that she was a month late could be chalked up to stress, but Emma had a sinking feeling that there were some extraneous factors involved. The pregnancy test proved it.

The damn thing stubbornly displayed a tiny plus symbol, like it was mocking her. It wasn’t a replacement for a real doctors, but it was the best they’d get under the circumstances. Given the diversity of their ranks she was sure that _someone_ in the mansion was a doctor, but she didn’t trust anyone well enough to confide in them. There was only Joe.

 _And Jacob_ , a little voice in her added. _But you wouldn’t know anything about that now, would you?_ She didn’t even know if he was really alive, though judging by the panicked voicemails she kept getting, he was hiding out somewhere. Paul was still alive too, which only complicated things.

Though she’d rather slit her own throat than call him, Emma couldn’t help but imagine how the conversation would go. _Hi Jacob. Sorry I abandoned you. I’ve been ignoring all of your calls, but I thought you might want to know that I’m pregnant. It could be yours. Then again, it could be Paul’s too. How’s he doing anyway? Still dying? Great, great. Now what colour should we paint the nursery?_

Ugh, **_no thank you_**.

But that still begged the question: what was she _going_ to do? Carrying a baby, going through with a pregnancy in the midst of all this chaos seemed like an incredibly stupid idea. But it wasn’t like there was a Planned Parenthood in the middle of nowhere, or even in Havenport. Though she knew that their current situation wasn’t exactly the best one to bring a child into, she couldn’t just give up on it. The idea of aborting the pregnancy made her feel vaguely ill anyway.

Emma shoved the test back into its box and left the bathroom. The box went straight under the mattress where, hopefully, nobody would find it. Then it was off to get changed and face Joe. At the very least, she was comforted by the thought that she didn’t have to tell him right away. They were holed up in the mansion for the long haul, biding their time until the next chapter began. She could at least wait until then.

As she undressed, she paused to admire herself in the mirror. There were a few light marks on her skin, remnants of her tryst with Joe. Her hips were still thin, stomach still flat. High school had taught her that mothers started showing around four months, maybe a little earlier. _She_ would start showing, if she survived that long.

This was her chance to be the mother she’d never had. This baby, no matter what it was, would never feel the way she had as a child (or even as an adult). It would be loved, of that she was _absolutely_ certain.

***

The first step was telling Joe.

Emma swore he could hear her heart pounding. But she’d never been afraid to reveal her secrets to him before. Joe knew all her deepest secrets, all her darkest desires. He saw into her heart and he loved her all the same. She loved him too, maybe even more than she loved Jacob. Joe had been the one to show her who she truly was. He helped her come out of the shadows. Surely she could trust him with this news.

Surprisingly, he wasn’t upset at the kink in their plans. On the contrary, he was positively thrilled once she managed to stammer out her news.

“A baby?” he’d asked, eyes widening. “Is it…” He gestured to himself, and then to her.

“No,” she’d replied quickly. “Back at the farmhouse, Jacob and I…” Feeling a slight burn of resentment she added, “and Paul…”

If he found that surprising, Joe pretended not to notice. Instead, he strolled over and took her hands in his. “Emma, this is wonderful news. The gift of new life is always precious. It should be cherished – _you_ should be cherished.” He cupped her face in both hands and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “This calls for a celebration, no?”

“Joe,” she protested quietly. “The plan…”

“No, no, the book can wait. We’ve held out this long. I’m sure Ryan would enjoy a reprieve anyway, after what happened with his little friend Agent Weston. We have got to prepare…well, everything. Have you told Jacob and Paul yet?”

Emma shook her head, about to reply when a loud crash cut her off.

Roderick crouched near the door, holding the remains of an expensive-looking crystal vase. To his credit, he did look slightly guilty.

“How long have you been listening?” Emma stared at him, tensing slightly. She didn’t trust Roderick, to say the least. He was Joe’s man, not hers. While he might have been the one to bring things together, she couldn’t help but think that he was really only in it for himself. He wasn’t what she had imagined, though she respected Joe’s decision to listen to him.

“Long enough to hear what I needed to hear.” Roderick stood, brushing his hands off on his pants. “You’re really pregnant?”

“It’s none of your business.” Emma looked to Joe, silently asking for backup. She didn’t want _Roderick_ to join in on the discussion. This was between her and Joe, and the boys whenever they showed up.

“Beg your pardon, but I think it is my business. This wasn’t part of the plan. What the hell are you going to do with a baby?” He’d barely tolerated Joe’s obsession with retrieving Joey. Having an _infant_ in a house full of highly unstable people was even worse.

“She does have a point, Roderick,” Joe interjected. “Though this does put a kink in our plans.”

“Why should it?” Emma’s hands clenched into fists, and she tried to keep from raising her voice. “Paul and Jacob brought you Sarah, Joe. I brought Joey here for you. As far as things are concerned, they’re out of the picture. Why should that change anything else you’ve got planned? As soon as Paul got stabbed, he was a write off. Jacob’s stuck with him. And now…there’s me.”

“I need someone I can trust to keep an eye on Claire –”

“You need someone who she doesn’t want to murder.” Emma glanced at the floor, taking a deep breath. “I love Claire like a mother, but she doesn’t trust me. She blames me for taking Joey. And if she found out about this? How do you think she’d react? She already wants to kill me, Joe.” They’d had that conversation already; though Emma had survived, she didn’t want to go through it again. She hesitated for a heartbeat before adding, “I don’t want anything to happen to the baby. It could be a new start for us.”

Trump card. Joe immediately softened once she said the word ‘baby,’ and he smiled gently. Emma pretended not to notice Roderick rolling his eyes, wanting to feel content with the victory.

“Well we can’t have that, now can we?” Joe rested a hand on her shoulder, smile widening. “I do believe this means we have some plans to make.”


End file.
